Coin controlled machine for operating on tape



g- 29, 1967 F. E. SMITHBERG ETAL 3,338,367

COIN CONTROLLED MACHINE FOR OPERATING ON TAPE Filed Feb. 15, 1966 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 QHHHHH Aug. 29, 1967 F. E. SMITHBERG ETAL COIN CONTROLLED MACHINE FOR OPERATING ON TAPE Filed Feb. 15, 1966 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 ROBERT L. KAHN ATTY Aug. 29, 1 F. E. SMITHBEIVQG ETAL 3,338,357

COIN CONTROLLED MACHINE FOR OPERATING ON TAPE Filed Feb. 15, 1966 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 20 J01 J00 J09 F. E. SMITHBERG ETAL 3,338,367

COIN CONTROLLED MACHINE FOR OPERATING ON TAPE Aug. 29, 1967 Filed Feb. 15, 1966 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 ryfb 1925 i [720? 0719/ wdzfm wwmflw/m BY ROBERTL.KAHN,ATTY

Aug. 29, 1967 F. E. SMITHBERG ETAL 3,

I COIN CONTROLLED MACHINE FOR OPERATING ON TAPE 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Feb. 15', 1966 F/ayd 7 Smffe g- 29, 1967 F. E. SMITHBERG ETAL 3,338,367

COIN CONTROLLED MACHINE FOR OPERATING ON TAPE Filed Feb. 15, l966 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 United States Patent 3,338,367 COIN CONTROLLED MACHINE FOR OPERATING ON TAPE Floyd E. Smithberg and Elmer H. Anderson, St. Charles, Ill., assignors to Dukane Corporation, St. Charles, 11]., a corporation of Delaware Filed Feb. 15, 1966, Ser. No. 527,551 12 Claims. (Cl. 1976.7)

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A machine for embossing plastic tape with any desired sequence of indicia as combination of levers, embossing die and associated clutch, and counting means whereby up to a predetermined maximum number of indicia may be embossed on a strip of tape whose length may vary up to a maximum and generally determined by the number of embossings on such tape. The counting arrangement limits the maximum number of operations on tape and the clutch and other mechanism provides means for automatically equating the trailing length of blank tape to the predetermined leading length of blank tape. The lever arrangement is interlocked with a suitable coin control so that operation of the mechanism is possible only after release by the coin control means.

The new machine is particularly useful for control by coins, keys or the like where up to a predetermined maximum number of operating steps are provided. As an example, a coin controlled machine embodying the invention can provide for a maximum number of embossing or spacing steps after which the processed tape or ribbon operated upon is cut from a supply roll. Thus, as a specific example, the new machine may have a maximum number of steps (embossing and/or spacing), such as twenty as an example, after which the processed tape can be severed. Thereafter the machine is in stand-by condition and can be rendered operative by a new coin. A new length of tape will be operated upon to initiate a completely new cycle of tape operating steps. In practice, a blank space between embossings will be an operating step and will be counted to provide for a maximum length of processed tape in response to a coin or key operation or the like.

A machine embodying the present invention is characterized by an all mechanical and novel operation construction. The all mechanical construction has the desirable characteristic of eliminating electromagnetic devices including control switches which are unreliable and not as rugged and as trouble-free as such mechanical elements as levers, gears and springs.

In particular, a machine embodying the present invention provides automatically at predetermined length of unprocessed tape at the trailing part of a severed piece of tape, said blank length being generally equal to the blank length of tape at the leading end of the severed length of tape. This is true irrespective of the number of operating steps, up to the maximum number permitted, for a complete processed tape cycle. Thus, such a processed length of tape, including the blank ends, may be used on baggage or elsewhere and have blank tape lengths and both ends thereof for use in attaching the processed tape to any desired object.

For convenience, a length of tape which has been processed by the machine up to the maximum number of steps permitted, will be referred was a processed length of tape. It is understood that in practice, tape will be fed from a roll of indefinite length and after passing through the machine and being processed thereby will be meas ured and severed to a desired length up to a maximum.

A full disclosure of the invention and machine embodying the same will now be made in conjunction with drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a complete machine embodying the invention, the machine being housed in a cabinet.

FIG. 2 is a section on line 22 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a section on line 33 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a section on line 44 of FIG. 2 showing the machine in standby position.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged section on line 5-5 of FIG. 2'.

FIG. 6 is a partial end view on line 6-6 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 7 is a detail on line 77 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 6 but showing the parts in a difierent position. v

FIG. 9 is a detail generally similar to FIG. 4 but showing the parts in operating position.

FIG. 10 is a section on line 1010 of FIG. 15.

FIG. 11 is a section on line 11-11 of FIG. 9.

FIG. 12 is a view on line 1212 of FIG. 9.

FIG. 13 is an enlarged detail on line 1313 of FIG. 9.

FIG. 14 is a section on line 14-14 of FIG. 9.

FIG. 15 is an enlarged detail of a portion of the em- FIG. 20 is an exploded perspective view of the tape drive.

Referring first to FIG. 1, the machine comprises housing 10 having front operating panel 11 and sloping indicia selection panel 12. Housing 10 may be of any suitable material as steel and, as illustrated here, has coin slide 15 at the front. Instead of a coin slide, a key or manual control may be used. Coin slide 15 is movable toward the housing wall and, assuming that a coin of proper denomination has been used and accepted by the mechanism, the inward movement of coin slide 15 will change the machine from stand-by to operational for accommodating a desired number of operating steps up to a maximum numher which may be set to any desired value by controlling the travel of parts of the mechanism to be later described. The housing should be deep enough so that user cannot grip any tape prior to severance, when the pieceof tape drops out.

Extending from operating panel 11 are operating knobs 17, 18 and 19. These operating knobs may be designed to be moved inwardly toward panel 11 or outwardly or downwardly for accomplishing the desired operation of the machine. As illustrated in the drawings, operating knobs 17 to 19 inclusive are adapted to be moved downwardly from a normal position. Operating knob 17 will be used for embossing, operating knob 18.will be used for spacing between adjacent embossings and operating knob 19 will be used to sever a length of tape, this knob also functioning to terminate a cycle of operating steps unless terminated by the mechanism of the machine itself after a maximum number of steps have been effected.

Panel 12 has rotatable knob 21 carrying pointer 22 which plays over scale 23 carrying indicia, as letters of the alphabet, numbers or any other desired characters to be embossed upon tape. It is understood that for each embossing step, controlled by movement of knob 17, it will be necessary to turn knob 21 to select the desired letter or number or indicia to be embossed. Operating panel 11 has discharge chute 25 where processed tape after severance can be claimed by the operator.

Referring to FIG. 3, operating knobs 17 to 19 inclusive each control rocking pairs of bars 17a, 17b, 18a, 18b, 19a and 19b respectively. Each of these rocking bar pairs is pivotally carried by pin 27 supported at the side panels of machine frame 20 inside of housing 10. Rocking bar pairs 17a to 19b inclusive are each provided with reinforcement strips between the bars of a pair to stiffen the bar structures. The specific reinforcing pattern of the metal strips as shown in FIG. 3 may be varied as desired.

Operating knobs 17 and 18 are interconnected so that when spacing knob 18 is forced downwardly (as seen in FIG. 1), the rocking bar pair 17a and 17b will also move downwardly. However, the downward movement of spacing knob 18 is limited by the edge of panel 11 (FIG. 1) so that the embossing bar pair will not provide embossing although the tape is advanced by one step. The interlocking action is obtained by angle piece 28 (FIG. 3) carried by bar 18b and extending over the top edge of bar 17a. Thus, embossing knob 17 may be depressed for operation independently of spacing knob 18.

The machine is normally maintained in stand-by condition where knobs 17 and 18 cannot be pushed down by mechanism illustrated in FIG. 4 (and also to some extent in FIGS. 2 and 3). The mechanism for accomplishing this includes locking plate 32 slidably secured to the frame within housing by pins 33, 34 and 35 carried by the frame and operating in slots 33a, 34a and 35a of plate 32. From the position for stand-by shown in FIG. 4, locking plate 32 can be moved toward the left. This leftward movement of locking plate 32 is accomplished by operation of coin slide 15. Referring to FIG. 3, dog plate 38 pivotally secured at 39 to part of the frame of the machine has downwardly extending pin 40. Movement of coin slide inwardly of the housing as seen in FIG. 1, results in pin 40 being engaged and causes dog plate 38 to turn on pivot pin 39. This movement causes dog plate portion 38a to engage downwardly extending metal finger piece 42 and move it to the left as seen in FIG. 4. Downwardly extending finger piece 42 is rigidly secured to lock bar 44 which is pivotally secured to locking plate 32 by pin 45. Thus the movement of lock bar 44 to the left will cause locking plate 32 to move to the left.

Locking plate 32 has slots 47a and 47b extending upwardly from the bottom edge thereof. Locking plate 32 is normally biased by spring 44 1 extending between the left end of lock bar 44 and the frame of the entire machine to the stand-by position illustrated in FIG. 4, from which position locking plate 32 can be moved left, as seen in FIG. 4, against the tension spring 44a.

The standby position of locking plate 32 is such that slots 47a and 47b are laterally offset to the right from the rear ends of bars 17a and 17b. Thus, in the position illustrated in FIG. 4, the rear ends of these bars extend rearwardly beyond locking plate 32 and are restrained against upward movement thus preventing knobs 17 and 18 from being pushed downwardly. When locking plate 32 moves to the left from the position of stand-by in FIG. 4, this occurring in response to the operation of the coin slide, locking plate slots 47a and 47b are disposed above the rear ends of bars 17a and 17b and permit emboss- FIG. 4, against the tension of spring 44a.

Locking plate 32 has additional slot 48 which, in this particular construction, happens to be located adjacent and to the left of slot 47b as seen in FIG. 4. Slot 48 is provided for accommodating the upward travel of a portion of the step counting mechanism when advancing the tape operated upon up to the predetermined maximum number of steps. This mechanism will be described later.

Additionally, locking plate 32 has slot 49 extending upwardly from the bottom edge of the plate, this slot being located near the right end of the locking plate as seen in FIG. 4. Slot 49 is wide enough and deep enough s0 that the end of severing control bar 19a can always be rocked with the rear end of arm 19a always being able to enter slot 49 irrespective of the position of locking plate 32.

Pivotally secured on pivot pin 51 carried by the right end of lock bar 44 is bell-crank having arms 50a and 50b. Bell-crank 50 is biased by spring 52 extending between pin 53 on lock bar 44 and the end of arm 50a. The arrangement is such that the bell-crank is biased to the normal position illustrated in FIG. 19 where arm 50a is stopped from further movement in a counterclockwise direction by pin 54 on lock bar 44. The frame of the machine carries pin 55 which in the position lilust-rated in FIG. 4 is just below the bottom end of bell-crank arm 50b. The location of pin 55 is such that the bottom edge of lock bar 44 is below the top edge of slot 49. Consequently, the rear portion of severing bar 19a can be moved upwardly to engage the bottom edge of lock bar 44.

When locking plate 32 is in machine operating position where knobs 17 and 18 may be moved downwardly, upward movement of the rear portion of arm 19a for severing will result in this rear portion of the arm engaging the bottom edge of lock bar 44 to elevate (the same above the normal position of the lock bar. Lock bar 44 is biased to this normal position by spring 44a. When the coin slide is operated to change the condition of the machine from standby to operate, lock bar 44 is moved to the left, (as seen in FIG. 4) moving locking plate 32 also to the left, and causes bell-crank arm 50b to be displaced leftward of pin 55. Lock bar 44 has its bottom edge at the right end shaped to provide finger 44b and step 440. When lock bar 44 is thus moved leftward, from the position illustrated in FIG. 4 to the position illustrated in FIG. 9, spring 44a causes the lock bar to turn on its pivot pin 45 and drop finger 44b down against pin 55. This locks the lock bar 44 and locking plate 32 in the machine operating position illustrated. When the rear end of severing bar 19a is moved up sufiiciently, to terminate machine operation, the severing bar engages the bottom edge of lock bar 44 and trips the right end of the lock bar 44 so that it clears pin 55 and lock bar 44 and locking plate 32 can return to the standby position illustrated in FIG. 4.

It will be noted that in the stand-by position of the mechanism as illustrated in FIG. 4, extreme right end 32a of locking plate 32 extends beyond the frame side. When the mechanism is in operating position as illustrated in FIG. 9, locking plate 32 is displaced longitudinally to the left of the position illustrated in FIG. 4 so that end portion 32a does not project beyond the frame side of the machine. The purpose of this will now be explained.

Referring now to FIG. 6, the end wall of the machine frame carries two guide pins and 61 in vertical alignment. Guide pins 60 and 61 support movable plate 63 having slots 64 and 65 within which guide pins 60 and 61 are disposed and operate. Plate 63 has rack 67 thereon, (the rack thickness being beyond the outer face of plate 63) the teeth of this rack meshing with pinion 68. Plate 63 is normally biased to its lowest position by spring 70 extending bet-ween a pin on the machine frame and a pin on the plate. FIG. 6 shows plate 63 in its uppermost position, this position being assumed right after the operation of severing knob 19. In this top position of plate 63, dog 71 pivoted on pin 72 carried by plate 63 rests against the top edge of extension 32:: of locking plate 32.

The position of the mechanism in FIG. 6 is stable and will remain in such condition until locking plate 32 is moved to change the condition of the machine from stand-by to operate. When this occurs, locking plate 32 will be moved to the left, as seen in FIG. 4, permitting spring 70 to pull plate 63 down to its lowest position (FIG. 8), where pins 60 and 61 will be at the tops of the slots 64 and 65 rather than at the bottom as illustrated in FIG. 6. Dog 71 is biased to the position illustrated in FIG. 6 by coil spring 74. The rear of rack 67 is relied upon to cooperate with the top part of the dog to the position illustrated in FIG. 6.

Plate '63 carries finger 76 which extends beyond the rack teeth as illustrated in FIG. 6. Finger 76, upon dropping of plate 63 to its lowest position, engages top 77 of bar 78 pivoted to the frame at 79. Bar 78 has bottom portion '80 pivotally secured to one end of toggle spring '82, the other end of the spring being secured about pin 83 on the frame of the machine. Bar 78 has a limited range of rocking determined by stop pin 85 carried by the frame and the teeth of rack 67. When plate 63 drops from the position illustrated in FIG. 6, finger 76 engages top 77 of bar 78 and rocks the bar to move counterclockwise about pivot 79 where the sharp edge of the bar can I engage a tooth on rack 67. Spring 82, by virtue of toggle action, will keep bar 78 stable in the position shown in FIG. 6 or in the position shown in FIG. 8 where the top edge of bar 78 engages rack 67.

The mechanism illustrated in FIG. 6 primarily functions to provide a generally constant trailing 'length of tape after the machine has gone through a desired number of steps. A rack which will now be described operates to determine the maximum number of machine steps in a complete cycle. This counting rack is illustrated in FIGS. 4, 9 and 11 and comprises rack bar 89 carrying teeth 90 and slidable in guide 91 rigidly secured to locking plate 32. Rack bar 89 has at the bottom thereof pin 93 which extends rearwardly through slot 48 of locking plate 32. Looking plate 32 carries downwardly extending support bar 94 which is shaped to permit pin 93 to travel between the stop edge of bar 94 to below the top of slot 48.

Pin 93 has one end of spring 95, the bottom end of the spring being anchored to the bottom of support bar 94. Pin 93 extends far enough to the rear beyond locking plate 32 and lock bar 44 so that pin 93 can engage the bottom of lock bar 44 and move it upwardly when counting rack 89 has reached its top limiting position for determining the maximum number of machine steps.

In this upward movement of pin 93, this pin wil l engage the bottom edge of lock bar 44 and will operate to unlock bar 44 from the full operate position illustrated in FIG. 9 and cause the lock bar to assume an interme diate locked position illustrated in FIG. 17. In this intermediate position, locking plate 32 is permitted to move away from the operate position of FIG. 9 to the intermediate position illustrated in FIG. 17. In this intermediate position, the locking plate together with the lock bar moves to a position which is somewhat similar to the stand-by position of FIG. 4 in that the actuating bars for embossing or spacing cannot be operated due to the fact that the slots of locking plate 32 are out of line with the edges of the operating bars. However, this intermediate lock position differs from the stand-by position of FIG. 4 in that the coin control cannot be moved to unlock the mechanism for operation. Instead, the intermediate position only permits operation of the tape cutting bar. This is due to the necessity for the complete unlock ing action in connection With the upward travel of rack 67 (FIG. 6) and movement of dog 71 past end 32a of locking plate 32. When this latter operation occurs, lock bar44 is completely unlocked to the stand-by position previously described and permitsthe locking plate 32 to assume the position illustrated in FIG. 4. The objec tive of having an intermediate lock position for lock bar 44 is to prevent an uncut length of tape from being used to pull tape from the tape supply reel through the machine without any embossing, spacing or severing.

The upward movement of counting rack 89 for each embossing or spacing operating is obtained by the follow ing means to be described.

In connection with the movement of locking plate 32 to the left as seen in FIG. 4- this being in preparation for operating the machineit should be noted that pinion 98 engaged by rack teeth is freely movable along and about shaft 100 journalled between parts 101 and 102 of the frame of the machine. Pinion 98 is maintained in position along shaft 100 by the enlarged members at the two ends. Pinion 9 8 is rigidly secured to clutch member 104 in the form of a gear having teeth extending parallel to the axis of shaft 100. Clutch gear 104 is adapted to engage companion clutch gear 105 rotatably secured to shaft 100 by pin 106 in slot 106a. Coil spring 107 around shaft 100 disposed between pin 106 and shaft bearing portion 101 biases companion clutch gear 105 over a small range of travel along the axis of shaft 100. This last range of travel is for the purpose of permitting clutch gears 104 and 105 to engage without requiring great accuracy in the location of the parts.

Shaft 100 extends beyond frame bearing support 101 and terminates in handle portion 109, this being useful in threading the end of a large roll of tape into the machine. It is understood that this tape after going through the machine and being embossed or operated upon will be severed by mechanism to be described. However, when a roll of tape is used up, a new roll must be started through the machine.

Shaft 100 extends beyond bearing portion 102 and carries an index and tape advance means in the form of gears 111 and 112 both preferably being a unitary structure. These gears are rotatably locked to shaft 100. Gear 111 has triangular teeth and gear 112 has ratchet teeth. Between gear portions 111 and 112 is tape advance roller 113 over which the tape feeds. Gear 111 has cooperating therewith pawl spring 115 for providing an index action. Gear 112 has pawl (see FIG. 12) 1-17 for engaging the teeth thereof. Pawl 117 is carried by spring arm 118 secured to the bracket 119 carried by bar 17a. Bars 17a and 17b are provided with heavy coil spring 120 disposed around pin 27, this springbeing so arranged that when knobs 17 or 18 are pressed downwardly for machine operation, this spring will be tensioned and when knob 17 is released, this spring will return the knobs to their normal up position. Upon operation of knob 17 or 18, pawl 117 will first be moved up as seen in FIG. 12 past one tooth of ratchet gear 112 and on the down stroke of pawl -117 (when knob or key 17 is released to move up) ratchet gear 112 is turned. The movement of ratchet gear 112 in an anticlockwise direction as seen in FIG. 12 causes tape advance roller 113 to turn and thus advance the tape one'step. Gear 111 and its pawl 115 cooperate to provide an index action.

The step by step turning of ratchet gear 112 causes shaft 100 to turn and, through clutch gears 105 and 104, causes counting rack 89 to climb upwardly one tooth for each machine step. Shaft 100 continues beyond gears 11] and 112 to which it is secured and continues to a clutch arrangement illustrated in FIG. 20. Shaft 100 is securely coupled to clutch drum 130. Clutch drum cooperates with companion clutch drum 131, these two drums being coaxial and longitudinally spaced from each other.

Companion clutch cylinder or drum 131 is rigidly secured to stub shaft 132 journalled-in the side of the machine frame and is securely coupled to pinion 68 Clutch drum 131 is provided with annular groove 134 between the ends of the drum. Clutch coil spring 136 has bent end 137 which is adapted to ride in groove 134 to prevent displacement of coil spring 136 longitudinally of the axis of clutch drum 131. The outside diameter of clutch drum 131 is somewhat larger than the outside diameter of clutch drum 130 and coil spring 136 has a normal untensioned inside diameter which is somewhat less than the outside diameter of clutch drum 131 and somewhat larger than the outside diameter of clutch drum 130. Coil spring 136 has enough turns so that it can straddle drums 130 and that portion of drum 131 up to groove134.

Normally coil spring 136 hugs drum 131 tightly enough for providing a driving connection assuming that direction of rotation of the drum would be correct for this type of clutch action. Normally no driving connection exists between drums 130 and 131 through coil spring 136. However, the clutch arrangement is provided with means for establishing a driving connection between drums 130 and 131 when severing knob or key 19 is actuated. This means is illustrated in FIG. 20 and comprises the following. Disposed over coil spring 136 and enlarged part of clutch drum 131 is control sleeve 140 rigidly secured to drum 131 by set screw 141. The set screw engages enlarged part of drum 131 which is beyond groove 134 toward pinion 68.

Control sleeve 140 is turned by pinion 68 which is actuated by rack 67 (discussed in connection with FIG. 6). Control sleeve 140 has end portion 143 which overlies clutch drum 130 and the turns of spring 136 which is disposed about drum 130. Sleeve end portion 143 does not extend completely around drum 13-0 but only a portion thereof and the inside surface of end portion 143 is clear of the outer surface of coil spring 136. End portion 143 normally cooperates with spring pressure finger 144 anchored to bracket 145 of the machine frame (FIG. 11). Pressure finger 144 normallly rests upon the outside of end portion 143 but can engage the outside of the end turns of coil spring 136 when control sleeve 140 is rotated for part of a revolution. When this occurs, end portion 143 of the sleeve is turned to clear spring finger 144 all-owing spring finger 144 to rest directly upon coil spring 136 over clutch drum 130.

Spring finger 144 pressing the loose ends of coil spring 136 against clutch drum 130 causes the end turns of coil spring 136 to grip drum 130, thus establishing a driving connection through the coil spring between drum 130 and drum 131. The direction of drive is from pinion 68 to clutch drum 131 through coil spring 136 to clutch drum 130. This driving connection causes pinion 68 to drive shaft 100 in the direction to advance tape. Shaft 100 can be turned in this direction for tape advance even though gears 111 and 112 are provided with pawls. Index gear 111 can be turned in either direction as far as its pawl is concerned. Tape advance ratchet gear 112 can be turned in a tape advancing direction since its pawl 117 will permit the teeth of gear 112 to pass. Thus, tape advance roller 113 can be advanced by rotation of pinion 68 which, in turn, is operated by rack 67 elevated upwardly by operation of severing knob 19.

The amount of tape advanced through the action of pinion 68 and the coil spring clutch is controlled by the angle through which pinion 68 drives clutch drum 130 and this, in turn, always begins to operate after control sleeve 140 is turned to establish the driving connection to clutch drum 130. This amount of tape at the trailing end of a processed lengh of tape will generally be about the same irrespective of how many machine steps up to the maximum have been performed on the tape.

Due to the action of cutter bar 1% in elevating rack 67 to the top position illustrated in FIG. 6, it will be impossible for anyone to feed additional tape from the machine by repeated movements of the cutter knob. Once rack 67 has reached its top position it will not respond to further movements of the cutter bar. The cutting action itself, to be described, occurs at or near the bottom of the downward movement of cutter knob 19. It is possible that a user of the machine may depress the cutter knob insufficiently for cutting action in which case there would be a tendency for the user to move the cutter knob down several times. As has been previously indicated, it is desirable that the housing for the machine be so dimensioned that it will be impossible for anyone to grip the end of the tape prior to severing. This action may be readily obtained by having the housing deep enough and the discharge chute guide a severed piece of tape toward the mouth where it can be reached and pulled out.

The embossing, spacing and cutting means are of conventional construction and are widely used in machines manufactured and sold under the trade name Dymo. Knob 21 is carried on stub shaft which passes through panel plate 12 and is connected to index plate 151. Index plate 151 has a plurality of peripheral notches and is provided with index spring 152 suitably anchored on the panel plate 153 forming part of the entire machine frame structure. Disposed below index disc 151 and rigidly secured thereto to rotate therewith is embossing die plate 155 containing the characters to be embossed on the tape. Each character is carried on a tongue 155a. Tape 156 is adapted to be fed between index plate 151 and die plate 155. The assembly of index plate and die plate and knob is carried on shaft 150 which is secured to the under side of panel plate 153 of the frame by C washer 157.

For providing an embossing operation, a plunger mechanism illustrated in FIG. 15 is provided. The plunger mechanism comprises a plunger rod 159 having enlarged head 168 and embossing tip 161. Embossing tip 161 operates through an aperture in panel plate 153 and is large enough to provide an embossing action for one character only. It will be noted in FIG. 15 that an embossing tip 161 is adapted to engage recess 163 in the die plate to force the die plate or the portion adjacent thereto up against the bottom surface of tape 156. Index plate 151 has recess 164 to cooperate with the raised character on the die plate for permitting the tape to be forced into recess 164.

Embossing plunger 159 is biased to an inactive position by coil spring 166 disposed around the same and anchored between had of the plunger and the bottom of frame panel plate 153. Pressing against the bottom outside face of plunger head 160 is L shaped bracket 168 which is rigidly attached to a portion of embossing arm 17a. The arm and bracket are so arranged that when embossing knob 17 is pushed downwardly, bracket 168- will move a short distance in the general direction of the axis of plunger 159 to provide an embossing operation. The embossing arms 17a and 17b are normally biased so that knob 17 is normally in the up position by coil spring 120 previously described. Coil spring 120 has its ends braced between the cross reinforcement for embossing arms 17a and 171) on the one hand and the bottom of panel plate 153.

The embossing means so far described is so dimensioned that no embossing occurs during the first part of the downward stroke of knob 17. This permits the pawl and ratchet arrangement (parts 112; 117 to 119 inclusive) to operate to feed tape. When spacing knob 18 is depressed, this can only go down part way due to the narrow slot in front panel 11 of the housing and thus permits tape feeding to occur on the return of knob 18 but no embossing. It is understood that parts 117 to 119 inclusive are carried by embossing arm 17a (see FIG. 12).

Tape 156 (FIG. 15) is advanced by roller portion 113 cooperating with idler roller 172 pressed downwardly against roller 113 by spring 173 supported on panel plate 153 at 174. Tape 156 passes through a slotted guide structure 176 upwardly of the frame and goes on toward reel 177 carried at the back of the machine.

Cutting action is obtained by means illustrated in FIGS. 10, 13 and 15 Cutter bar 190 has portion 19c which, when elevated sufliciently, can engage head 180 attached to rocker arms 181 pivoted at 182 to sidewalls 183 extending downwardly from panel portion 153 of the frame. Bracket portion 180 is shaped to engage the bottom of cutter return spring 185 (FIG. 15) resting against the bottom face of panel portion 153. Rocker arms 181 are normally biased to the position illustrated in FIG. 15 and are coupled by pin 187 to parts 188 and 189'. Part 9 V 188 is stationary and has a slot below pin -187 to permit the pin to move downwardly. Part 189 is a cutter blade actuated by pin 187 and functions to cut the tape extending to the right of cutter blade 189 as illustrated in FIG. 15 from the parent tape body. Guide 189a attached to the cutter blade cooperates with the tape.

Excepting for the various operating arms 17a to 1% inclusive, and locking plate 32, the structure illustrated in FIG. 15 of the drawing forms no part of the present invention and, as hereinbefore stated, is embodied in tape embossing machines which have been available on the market for a number of years.

The general operation of the machine is as follows.

Assuming that a coin or key is utilized for unlocking the machine, the initial movement of the coin control irrespective of the manner in which it is obtained, is to move locking plate 32 and lock bar 44 to the left from the position illustrated in FIG. 4 to the position illustrated in FIG. 9. The movement of these two members causes clutch gears 104 and 105 to engage for counting purposes and permits emboss or space knobs 17 or 18v to be operated. For each operation of either of these knobs, the counting mechanism actuated through rack 89 is operated. Embossing actually occurs on the downstroke of knob 17 while tape advance occurs on the up stroke. This is evident from FIG. 12 where pawl 117 moves up more than one tooth during which time embossing occurs while on the return stroke, pawl 117 engages a ratchet tooth to turn gear 112 for tape advance. For spacing, knob 18 can go down just far enough for pawl 117 to climb to the next tooth without embossing and on the return stroke to advance gear 112 one tooth.

If prior to reaching the limit of the number of steps for machine operation, cutter knob 19 is operated, then the following occurs. Lock bar 44 is raised sufficiently high to the position illustrated in FIG. 19 to permit 1ocking plate 32 and lock bar 44 to return to the position illustrated in FIG. 4. At the same time, clutch gear 104 is disengaged from clutch gear 105 and permitsrack 89 to drop to its bottom position. Also, the movement of rack 67 to the position illustrated in FIG. 8 drops dog 71 below extension 32a of the locking plate so that the mechanism can assume the full stand-by position illustrated in FIG. 4.

If counting rack 89 has reached the limit of its upper travel, then pin 93 trips locking bar 44 just enough to put the mechanism in intermediate position illustrated in FIG. 17. In that position, step 44c rests upon pin 55 and prevents the locking plate and lock bar from moving to the extreme position illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 17. EX- tension 32a cooperates with dog 71 to prevent complete unlocking of plate 32 and bar 44 except through movement of the cutter knob. In this intermediate position, the emboss and spacing knobs cannot operate and as shown in FIG. 9, part 42 clears the top of the coin controlled actuating part sufficiently so that even in the intermediate position of bar 44, the coin control cannot engage part 42 of lock bar 44 for movement toward full operating position to the left. Thus, the machine is effectively locked against'any further action except for cutting. When cutting occurs, the locking plate and lock bar are both released from intermediate position illustrated in FIG. 17 to the full stand-by position illustrated in FIG. 4. The left end of lock bar 44 drops to the position shown in FIG. 4, where the coin control action can function.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination a machine for performing no more than a predetermined number of operating steps successively along the length of a tape for a machine operating cycle, said machine including at least one manually operated member for performing an operating step on said tape, said member including a bar having a free end, a locking plate, means for mounting said locking plate on said machine for movement between a machine standby position and a machine operating position, said plate having a slot in the edge thereof for registering with said maintaining said locking plate in machine operating position to permit the occurrence of machine operating steps, means for biasing said locking plate and lock bar away from machine operating position, means responsive to a predetermined maximum number of operating steps of said machine for moving said locking plate toward standby position, and manual means for returning said locking plate to standby after a desired number of operating steps less than said maximum number.

2. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said lock bar includes means at an end of said lock bar for maintaining said lock bar in one of a number of stable positions, one corresponding to a position where the locking plate is in standby position, another where said locking plate is in machine operating position and an intermediate position which locks against machine operating steps beyond the predetermined maximum.

3. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said means responsive to a predetermined maximum number of operating steps and manual means for returning said locking plate to standby include members cooperating with with an edge of said lock bar for moving said lock bar away from the machine operating position whereby said locking plate moves toward machine standby position.

4. The combination according to claim 3 wherein said means responsive to a predetermined maximum number of operating steps includes a counting rack and means for operating said rack to move the same a tooth at a time for each machine operating step. v

5. The combination according to claim 4 wherein said means responsive toa predetermined number of operating steps and said manual means for returning said locking plate to stand-by after a desired number of operating steps are connected to each other through a one-way clutch with the direction of clutch action providing for a power flow from said manual means for returning said locking plate to standby to said means responsive to a predetermined maxim-um number of operating steps in a direction for advancing tape through said machine for each operating step.

6. A machine for performing no more than a predetermined number of operating steps successively along the length of a tape for a machine operating cycle, the combination of a frame, a locking plate supported on said frame for linear movement over a limited distance between a machine standby position and a machine operatting position, said plate having at least one slot extend ing from an edge thereof, manually controlled means including the free end of'a lever, said lever and locking plate sl'ot registering only in machine operating position to permit operation of said manually controlled means for performing a machine operating step on said tape, a lock bar pivotally supported on said locking plate, said lock bar being movable about its pivot for a limited angle so that a lock bar portion moves toward or away from said slotted edge of said locking plate, means for biasing said lock bar to a position where said lock bar portion extends beyond said locking plate edge, said bias means also serving to bias said locking plate to a machine standby position, means disposed at said lock bar portion for maintaining said lock bar in at least two stable positions, one stable position corresponding to a machine standby position and the other stable position corresponding to a machine operating position, said lock bar in this last named position overlapping the edge of said locking plate, manual means for advancing said tape one step at a time during machine operation, a rack supported by said locking plate, means actuated by said tape advance means for moving said rack a certain distance, said last named means being operated only when said machine is in operating position, means operated by said rack for moving said lock bar out of a machine operating position to permit said locking plate to move toward a standby machine position, said rack operated means being effective after a predetermined maximum number of machine operating steps have been performed by said machine, a separate manua1 tape severing control for cutting a length of processed tape, a pinion turned by said tape severing manual control, and means operated by said pinion for driving said tape advance means through a predetermined distance prior to tape severance, said last named severing means control also cooperating with said lock bar for moving said lock bar to a machine stand-by position whereby a piece of processed tape will have substantially equal blank ends irrespective of whether said tape has been operated upon the maximum or less than the maximum number of steps.

7 7. The construction according to claim 6 wherein said means operated by said pinion for driving said tape advance means includes a clutch between two shaft portions, means normally preventing said clutch from transmitting power from said pinion through said clutch to said tape advance means and means operated by said pinion for rendering said clutch operative for power flow therethrough.

8. The construction according to claim 7 wherein the means actuated by said tape advance means for moving said rack includes a pair of clutch members, one of said clutch members being movable with said locking plate for engaging the other clutch member when said locking plate is away from machine standby position.

9. The construction according to claim 6 wherein said lock bar has a stepped end and means cooperating with said stepped end for providing an intermediate stable position of said lock bar and locking plate whereby the plate and bar in such intermediate position lock the machine against operating steps.

10. The construction according to claim 9 wherein said locking plate has an extension and wherein said machine has a dog for cooperating with said extension whereby the operation of said severing means functions to release the lock bar from its intermediate position and permits said lock bar and locking plate to return to standby position in response to the bias.

11. The construction according to claim 6 wherein manual means are provided for engaging a part on said lock bar away from the pivot point for moving said lock bar generally longitudinally thereof to move both lock bar and locking plate from standby to operating position, said last named manual means being disengaged from said lock bar part when the machine is off standby, whereby said last named manual means is inoperative when said machine is in any other position other than standby.

12. The construction according to claim 11 wherein said means disposed at said lock bar portion for maintaining said lock bar in at least two stable positions includes a stepped portion at the end of said lock bar for providing an intermediate stable position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 687,167 11/1901 Roovers et a1 197-6.7 716,064 12/1902 Lavery 197-6.7 750,432 1/ 1904 Casler et al. l97-6.7 760,694 5/1904 Lavery 1976.7 764,070 7/1904 Parker 1971 10 811,783 2/1906 Lavery l97-6.7 1,494,839 5/1924 Heese 1976.7 1,790,562 1/ 1931 Wetmore 197144 X ROBERT E. PULFREY, Primary Examiner.

E. S. BURR, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN COMBINATION A MACHINE FOR PERFORMING NO MORE THAN A PREDETERMINED NUMBER OF OPERATING STEPS SUCCESSIVELY ALONG THE LENGTH OF A TAPE FOR A MACHINE OPERATING CYCLE, SAID MACHINE INCLUDING AT LEAST ONE MANUALLY OPERATED MEMBER FOR PERFORMING AN OPERATING STEP ON SAID TAPE, SAID MEMBER INCLUDING A BAR HAVING A FREE END, A LOCKING PLATE, MEANS FOR MOUNTING SAID LOCKIN PLATE ON SAID MACHINE FOR MOVEMENT BETWEEN A MACHINE STANDBY POSITION AND A MACHINE OPERATING POSITION, SAID PLATE HAVING A SLOT IN THE EDGE THEREOF FOR REGISTERING WITH SAID BAR END WHEN SAID LOCKING PLATE HAS BEEN MOVED FROM STANDBY POSITION TO OPERATING TO PERMIT BAR MOVEMENT, SAID LOCKING PLATE IN ITS STANDBY POSITION HAVING SAID SLOT OUT OF LNE WITH THE BAR END TO PREVENT BAR MOVEMENT, MANUALLY CONTROLLED MEANS FOR MOVING SAID LOCKING PLATE FROM STANDBY POSITION TO OPERATIN POSITION FOR INITIATING A MACHINE OPERATING CYCLE, MEANS INCLUDING A LOCK PAR PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON SAID LOCKING PLATE FOR MAINTAINING SAID LOCKING PLATE IN MACHINE OPERATING POSI- 